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"Toronto has done a good job with this, compared to Cascadia (The Vancouver/Wasington State Metro Areas, sorta), as the quarantining in Toronto has been agressive. Now, we suspect it isn't long enough, but I do not think it is fair to single out Canada for criticism for the following reason."

And just to say a little more in defense of our response here, I've seen many paranoid and insulting comments on these threads about the "communist" Canadians response to and reporting on SARS. While it is true that it appears that public health officials here could have done a better job, and are inclined to downplay the number of cases and likelihood of transmission, there is one big difference between Canada and say, the PRC: we have a free press. Any lies, obfuscations and cover-ups by officials here are uncovered eventually, and reported in the media. This tends to (eventually, at least) force our officials to come clean and change their approach. This is happening today, in fact, when the reporting of cases of SARS will change to using the WHO's standards, which err more on the side of caution than Health Canada's standards. So when you suddenly see the numbers of suspected, possible or probable cases go up, be aware that these are cases which were already known but reported differently. Also there's good reason to believe these differences in reporting were based on reasonable differences of scientific opinion about this disease which is still not very well understood.

As I say, as a Canadian who lives less than an hour away from Toronto I am not so impressed with how this has been handled so far, but I do believe some of the criticisms leveled at our handling of it by posters here has been hyperbolic, to say the least.

I absolutely agree with you! I am not in favor of a health care system here in the states similar to that used in Canada, but it has nothing to do with SARS.

I am not at all sure the states are capable of doing any better a job. Our health care system here is failing, too, and much of the criticism of Canadian Health Care is simply part of a political food fight over what to do about it.

Those here who would use SARS to make a political point about the costs/benefits regarding health care are focusing on their distrust of government health care ideas, and not thinking deeply enough about the myriad contributing factors to health care/insurance issues.

(I personally favor a medical insurance savings account, as a start to a solution, but have no idea what to do about the lawsuit/insurance costs. Right now we are paying $750 a month for two people (Blue Cross standard group policy from a self-employed businesses group).

Our grown children have joined HMOs through their places of employment, and have to face paying out of pocket if they go beyond the incredible restrictions placed on coverage! And, I am assuming they wouldn't be breaking the law by doing so, and that is probably wrong!

I do not want to even get into the deterioration in care happening in our own hospitals in the states because of skyrocketing costs, excessive regulation, fear of litigiation, paperwork, and resulting economic red ink.

I know it is pretty hard to take the uncalled for Canadian bashing, but realize I think and it is the result of people taking sides in a liberal/conservative ideology battle over what to do about our own problems here in the states.

Do I get my flame suit on now? Call my Belgian Malinois buddies to come sit by my side at the computer just in case someone goes after me for being too honest?